Altar painting belonging to Diest’s Chamber of Rhetoric the ‘Christusogen’

From the Church of Our Lady where the members of the chamber had their altar. Founded in 1502, the ‘Christusogen’ or ‘Eyes of Christ’ was one of the most prestigious chambers of rhetoric in Diest. The central motif in this painting, a crucified Christ in an enclosed garden with red flowers, is also this Chamber of Rhetoric’s blazon. The couple kneeling at the front, Paul Cools and Maria Wiggers, commissioned the work. The text on the banderol reads “Door sient al”, after the maxim of The Eyes of Christ “Christus ooghen door sient al”.